The Broken Path: A Prequel
by AnarchySpider
Summary: In order for a king to rise into power, there must be a falling. A need for hope, and so, there is a falling in the three clans. SandClan, FireClan and LeafClan are challenged in their ability to survive, and something else has yet to even rise from the ashes.
1. The First Challenge

******_Disclaimer- _I don't own the Warriors series.**  


The First Challenge

Amber eyes flash with hidden emotions, a crow cries its sorrowful song above the trees. A cat leaps from the bushes, his paws falling upon an unforgiving sight. A bird that was dead before he even had the chance to even kill it. It lay on the fresh, fallen leaves, beady eyes staring back up at him.

The white tom pulled away from the partridge with a wary expression on his face. The bird seemed almost as if it had been long dead. He prodded it with a paw curiously. Maybe it was just playing dead. Were birds that smart? The young apprentice had no idea, but he was curious to find out. He batted the bird about with his paws a bit, but it didn't shiver into wakefulness like he'd expected it to. He froze, staring at it with wide eyes. What was he supposed to do now?

"Cloudpaw, did you catch anything?" a small, ginger tabby asked as she approached her apprentice. Her amber eyes stared at the frightened, white tom. Cloudpaw looked at her, his ears lying flat on his head. He was so confused. He didn't know of any birds being found dead in the forest before.

"No... The bird was already dead when I found it," he meowed in a soft voice. The she-cat stared at him worriedly. Her amber eyes swept over the bird and then Cloudpaw. She seemed a bit incredulous as well. Cloudpaw then assumed that there was no such occurrence.

"That can't be a good sign," the mentor replied and hurried over to him. She pushed Cloudpaw back with her thin tail and put her nose closer to the partridge's carcass. Her amber eyes narrowed as she thought. Cloudpaw wondered what she could be thinking. Then she reared back quickly, spitting and coughing as if a sudden bad smell had hit her nose. He stared at his mentor worriedly, his ears flat against his skull.

"Amberclaw? What's wrong?" Cloudpaw asked worriedly, his light, amber eyes wide. The she-cat shook her head at him, a darkness lingering in her amber eyes. The smell that had wafted off the partridge was not one she'd forget very easily.

"Bury it," she hissed, her dark eyes watering. How could Cloudpaw not scent the rancid disease that permeated from that bird? Cloudpaw nodded quickly, digging his claws into the earth. Amberclaw watched, her eyes narrowed. What could the bird mean? Was it a sign from StarClan? She pondered this for a long moment, her amber eyes flickering like a fire as she delved into different stages of her thoughts. The she shook her head and waited patiently for her apprentice to finish burying the bird. Amberclaw had deemed it a potentially bad sign.

"Come on, Cloudpaw. We can't return to camp empty pawed," she told her apprentice quickly. He nodded and padded after her, listening to the authoritative tone in her voice and knowing better than to go against it. Cloudpaw was clumsy and thundered through the forest, scaring away all the prey with half a mind to notice. Amberclaw's tail lashed back and forth as she grew impatient with the young cat.

"Cloudpaw! Quit acting like a kit! You know better than to thunder about like that!" Amberclaw hissed angrily at her apprentice. He flattened his ears against his skull in humiliation. Cloudpaw dipped his head toward his chest, shrinking and attempting to look small, despite his larger size. He'd always been a large cat, not in the sense that he was fat, but bigger. He made Amberclaw look little in his own manner.

"Sorry Amberclaw..." he mewed. Cloudpaw straightened out and began to move like his mentor had taught him to. Even if he was four moons into his apprenticeship, he still had a tendency to move around as if he were trying to wake the whole forest. Amberclaw had a half a mind not to cuff him every ten seconds for it. The two cats returned to camp with a vole and a mouse. The birds seemed eerily scarce throughout the forest. Their endless chirping also seemed nowhere to be found. Amberclaw couldn't help thinking back to the dead partridge Cloudpaw had found. She knew she had to warn Falconstar of it, if only to be safe. She placed the vole on the freshkill pile and dismissed her apprentice. Cloudpaw was a good cat, despite all his bumbling about. That, she could not stand. Amberclaw padded up to the leader's den in silence, her amber eyes searching for the words that would be used in her explanation to Falconstar. She sighed and entered the small hole that had once been inhabited by foxes. At least, that was what the elders told kits, if only to make them sound incredibly strong.

"Falconstar," she mewed into the darkness. The large, brown tom lifted his head, gazing at her kindly. Amberclaw liked to pretend she saw something else lingering in those amber eyes of his. A sort of gentle caress perhaps. She drug her mind out of such thoughts quickly. She was his deputy, for yowling out loud! What was she even thinking? Stormfur was even the tom's mate. There was no room for her there.

"Yes?" he replied, worried that she might come with bad news. The powerful tom was worried about leafbare. The clan was already having a hard time and it was only leaf-fall. Amberclaw swallowed, curling her slender tail around her paws.

"Cloudpaw found a dead partridge... it was diseased from what I could tell," Amberclaw said softly. Her dark eyes meeting Falconstar's hard gaze. It sent shivers down her spine. He seemed so cold and dismissive, almost like she was only subjective. Amberclaw couldn't help but feel pain skitter through her pelt but only before it heated up in embarrassment. Of course she was just another cat to him! What was she even thinking?

"Do you know if there will be more?" Falconstar inquired, his eyes growing worried. Rather suddenly, the tom looked old. Amberclaw stared at him, worry spiking up into her heart. Responsibility had definitely taken its toll on the tom, but he was still handsome in her eyes. Stormfur was a lucky cat. Amberclaw was definitely jealous, but no one would ever even catch wind of her feelings for their leader.

"Most likely," she meowed quietly, her voice cracking slightly. Falconstar nodded, seeming to take the news rather well despite himself. Amberclaw left his den to allow him time to think upon that upsetting news. Sadly, that meant she had a few moments to think, and her own mind was becoming a bit uncomfortable for her.

The deputy located Foxheart. A patrol would do nicely in distracting her from her echoing thoughts about Falconstar. The russet tom was at the freshkill pile, obviously grabbing something for his mate, Miststream, who was currently a queen. She padded up to him. Her mind slightly clouded with other matters, but she was becoming used to that.

"Foxheart, you and Lilypool are to join me on a border patrol," she notified the tom quickly. He nodded and hurried off to his mate. Amberclaw felt a wave of jealousy crash through her. As much as she wanted to canter about with an adoring mate, she just had to go and have an unrequited love for Falconstar. It depressed the she-cat more than anyone might expect it to. Dismissing her thoughts again, Amberclaw caught her sister's attention and waved her over with her tail.

"You ready for a border patrol?" she meowed. Lilypool's eyes twinkled warmly. She had such trust in others, but with Amberclaw, it was a bit different. The two were litter mates, and they'd always been rather close. At times, Amberclaw was thankful for the connection with her sister, but other times, such as with Falconstar, she felt a bit obligated to tell her sister about it but refused to such a thing. Lilypool put her in such a spot at times.

"Of course," Lilypool purred softly. Amberclaw nodded swiftly as Foxheart joined them. The three cats left the camp quickly. The tall pines and cedar trees towered over their heads. Amberclaw felt so small and meek in comparison, but she basked in the security the forest gave to her with its great canopy. Amberclaw shook out her fur and led the patrol forward with ease. They had to inspect their border with LeafClan closely. With a lower supply of prey, the untrustworthy cats were bound to try and steal some of their territory. The acidic scent of LeafClan wafted up to her nose, and she shook her head in attempt to ignore it. Amberclaw observed the border carefully, but it seemed LeafClan hadn't marked the border in a few days, which was a good sign. The other clan was as relaxed about borders as always. The cats usually had plenty of territory to survive off of. There were irritating incidents in which cats crossed borders and had to be put back in line. They had to crack down on them the moment they had a misdemeanor.

"It seems all good," Amberclaw meowed happily. Foxheart scented the air one last time before nodding his agreement. Amberclaw turned to her sister curiously, awaiting her nod of approval so that they could be done with the patrolling.

"That's good," Lilypool replied, her tail swishing back and forth worriedly. She didn't seem so sure about LeafClan's avoidance of the borders for the past couple of days, but Lilypool was always the one to worry about the simplest of things. Amberclaw sighed.

"Don't worry," she told Lilypool softly, laying her tail across Lilypool's back gently, "In about two days is when we'll need to wonder what happened to the other clan." Lilypool stared at Amberclaw for a long moment, and Amberclaw wondered if she was actually going to fall into a sort of mutual agreement at that. Sometimes even Amberclaw didn't know when it came to Lilypool.

"If you say so," Lilypool mewed softly. Amberclaw let out a purr of amusement, touching her shoulder to Lilypool's.

"Don't be such a worry wart," she told her sister. Lilypool sighed and nodded slightly at Amberclaw. Usually Lilypool believed in Amberclaw's words, and that just so happened to be one of those times, which Amberclaw was quite thankful for. She did not have time to deal with all her sister's silly worries then.

The patrol returned to the camp in a comfortable silence. Their camp was a small ditch that was located in the midst of the forest. A low branched cedar gave coverage on one side, creating the dens for warriors and apprentices, while a large bush composed the nursery, the waxy leaves of it always keeping it warm during the winter. A fallen tree destroyed the old medicine cat's den and block off the elder's, but the old dens had become a part of the broken tree in a way of adapting. It was said that the tree fell upon an evil cat named Moletooth, protecting FireClan from his destructive nature. A old fox hole was where Falconstar resided, it was a place Amberclaw found herself visiting more and more often. Her eyes even had a tendency to linger in that general direction.

Amberclaw had tucked the whole bird incident into the back of her mind. Surely it wasn't that big of a deal. Prey could die of natural causes too.

...

As Leaf-fall continued on, a certain cat's weight gain did not go unnoticed. Leaf-fall was not a normal time for a she-cat to suddenly grow round, which meant only one thing. She was expecting kits. That, was no small matter, seeing as no one even had the slightest idea of who the father of the litter was, and the same cat was incredibly angry all the time if any cat happened to mention her weight. She was very defensive about it. The she-cat even refused to join the queen's den. The whole matter went against her greatest expectancies. Deputy's were not to become queens at any time.

**The little end bit there eludes to the next challenge. I hope you enjoyed this first one. I just gave it a quick one over and added in details. A review would be nice!**

**~AS**

****Edit** The chapter is now twice the length! And some details are fixed. I know, I'm obnoxious. It's essentially the same though.  
**


	2. The Second Challenge

**_Disclaimer_- I do not own the Warriors Series.**

The Second Challenge

Amberclaw wobbled slightly and sunk beneath the cedar tree with an angry hiss. Her kits had obviously chosen that day to enter the world. She hated each and every one of her kits. They were becoming Amberclaw's greatest regret. How could she have known that she and Falconstar were going to end up with kits? How could she have even guessed that he liked her back? Even if it was only one shared night... How was she going to even live with that secret? Better yet, Amberclaw could never even say a single word about who the father was. Falconstar had a mate, and she was not Amberclaw. No, Amberclaw's current predicament was entirely her own fault. She just hoped that she wouldn't lose her position as deputy.

"Littlestep," Amberclaw meowed softly. The quiet medicine cat seemed to hear her and padded over quickly. She had safely hidden herself in the cedar tree on the ouskirts of the camp, where none of the cats had made their nests. Amberclaw felt ashamed of her current situation. She fancied that none of her fellow clan mates knew that she was pregnant. "Are your kits here?" Littlestep asked. The pair were hidden within the great limbs of the cedar tree. Amberclaw let out a grunt, trying to hide the pain that was splintering through her. Littlestep stroked her side with his tail, his yellow-green eyes attentive to the deputy's every breath.

"Push," he commanded her. Amberclaw listened and out came a tiny kit and then another. Amberclaw had been blessed with two kits. Amberclaw glared at the two bundles, her amber eyes harsh and cold. She didn't want them. Not even a little bit. Falconstar would accept them as a part of the clan, but they weren't his kits. He would never care for them like they were his children, give them that type of love. Amberclaw hated herself for putting Falconstar and herself in such a spot. She couldn't bear her self-hate, and thus pushed it onto the innocent kits. Littlestep stared at her sadly. He licked the two kits quickly, and they let out little mewls. Amberclaw's eyes softened slightly. She looked from the mottled brown kit to the sandy colored one.

"Spiderkit and Squirrelkit," she named them softly, then her amber eyes grew wide with realization. She was letting herself care about the two atrocities! She turned away from them quickly, her tail flashing back and forth.

"Give them to Miststream," she ordered the quiet tom in a harsh tone. Littlestep lifted the pair in his jaws and hurried them off to the nursery.

A surprised gasp could be heard from Miststream as she was given the two kits. What mother would just give her children up like that? She gently swept them up to her belly with her, long feather-like tail. The two began to suckle happily, newborns and already abandoned by their mother... Miststream just couldn't believe it.

Amberclaw sat beneath the cedar tree in silence, tired and empty. All her love and hate seemed to have left with the kits. All that was left was her guilt, and it was boundless. Guilt poured in every inch of her body, trying to fill the gaps within herself. She allowed herself to sleep, half expecting her kits to curl up to her stomach. Infinite emptiness, like the whispers of wind under a full moon. ... Amberclaw woke with a start. Littlestep sat next to her, his yellow-green eyes full of infinite pity and sadness. She hissed at him.

"Why do you look at me like that?" she growled at the medicine cat, and he only sighed.

"Don't you love them?" he asked her. Amberclaw stared at him, her tail lashing back and forth. Her amber eyes narrowed in thought.

"Of course not," she snapped after a long moment, but the she-cat looked emptier than Littlestep had seen her in a long time. Amberclaw was lost, and her only family that would accept her regardless of it all was being rejected. Lilypool had no idea of what was going on with her sister. The warriors were stressed out enough with the lack of prey. The freshkill pile was looking more and more measly as they approached leafbare.

"That's too bad," Littlestep murmured as she padded past him, her fur fluffed out a bit in defiance. The black tom was worried about the deputy. He knew all too well who the father of her kits had been. Falconstar wasn't always the best in decision making, and he had always had a slight fancy for Amberclaw. She was a very beautiful cat, just not as loving as she used to be. Littlestep padded back into camp in silence. He was going to go brief Miststream on the situation of her two new charges. He would keep Amberclaw's secret, and the she-cat knew that when she confided in him. Littlestep just felt bad for her and Stormfur, Falconstar's mate. He entered the nursery, where Miststream lay with her five bumbling kits. Two of the five, however, weren't hers at all.

"Littlestep, where's these two's mother?" she asked in a soft, caring voice. Littlestep looked at her, sadness flashing through his yellow-green eyes.

"She does not want them and refuses to be acknowledged as their mother. I hope that you will love and care for them as much as a mother would," he answered. Miststream looked at the two with pity gleaming in her blue-green eyes. The leaves of the bush that surrounded the nursery and kept the kits warm were as waxy and green as ever. It was comfortingly warm and the soft, happy scent of milk found its way to Littlestep's nose. Still, the two cats felt bad for the pair of kits that had been abandoned by their mother.

"I'm sure that they'll never know I'm not their mother... in spirit, at least," Miststream purred kindly. Blazekit looked up at his mother, blinking and yawning in her face as if he needed her attention right at that moment. She licked his head gently, and Littlestep believed that Miststream would be the perfect mother for Amberclaw's kits.

...

Amberclaw began to crack down on Cloudpaw's antics. He had been acting too much like a kit for too long. She took him and Nightpaw on a few battle training sessions, but most of the time Amberclaw just pounced on the tom when he wasn't expecting it. Even if they were on a hunting patrol. Cloudpaw found himself growing to hate his mentor for it. She belittled him at every window of oppurtunity, and her amber eyes always viewed him as a kit. He thought she would be gentler after the birth of her kits, but all that did for the strict cat was make it easier to catch her on the wrong paw. Cloudpaw could barely stand it, but he also wasn't the liveliest of cats. So he just kept his head low and tried to do everything perfectly.

"Cloudpaw! Your tail is all over the place!" Amberclaw meowed, pointing out the action to the fluffy white cat. He steadied it quickly, afraid of the metaphorical thorn in her flank. Why was she always so angry? Cloudpaw stalked through the grass, making sure that his tail didn't give away any more of his irritation. He felt like he was walking on a sweetgum tree's fruit, a spiky and dangerous thing to tread on. Cloudpaw had learned this the hard way in leaf-fall, when he was only a kit. He cringed at the memory. Amberclaw herself was like a sweetgum fruit. Spiky and hard to understand, she was beyond Cloudpaw in a great many things. Sometimes he wondered if that was what it meant to be a warrior, if so he wanted nothing of it. She looked so stressed all the time, but then she was also the deputy... The two returned from the hunting patrol with a squirrel, but that was all. There had been a few more dead birds found, all of which had been buried carefully. All of the cats in FireClan were beginning to worry about this. Cloudpaw couldn't forget the partridge he'd found either. It bugged him endlessly. Why were the birds dying? There had to be some kind of explination for it. It just didn't make sense to him. Cloudpaw pondered this for a long time, his ears pricked as he remained attentive to Amberclaw as well. He didn't want to delve too deep into his thoughts and end up with Amberclaw more upset than she already was. Amberclaw's eyes strayed to the kits as they rolled out of the nursery with a mixture of squeals and yelps.

"You'll never catch me! I'm going to take over all of FireClan!" Blazekit meowed with an playful roar. Spiderkit squared her shoulders, facing him off. She reminded Cloudpaw of Amberclaw, but much more like his mentor used to be... before having Spiderkit and Squirrelkit. He just didn't understand why she was angry at her kits. What had they done?

"Not with me, Spiderstar, around!" she meowed in reply. Amberclaw watched the two in silence. Cloudpaw noticed a strange emotion pass through his mentor's eyes._ Longing._ She seemed to care about them in some moments, and in the next, she was as angry as she was before, if not even more so. It scared Cloudpaw. Squirrelkit pounced on Blazekit, causing Graykit to jump to his aid, and then Spiderkit was tackled by Tigerkit. Amberclaw almost longed to watch the kits play all day and care for her own two like any other mother. Then she saw the resemblance Squirrelkit and Spiderkit had to Falconstar, and she hated them again. She couldn't help the overwhelming rage that fired through every fibre of her being. Her kits had too much of a resemblance. What if someone noticed? Thus, Amberclaw refused to give the pair the love and attention that they deserved. It emptied her though, and all that was left was always the guilt and anger. She hated them. She cursed their innocent souls and the anger only continued to build. Amberclaw couldn't help her short temper and quickness to scold Cloudpaw. He was turning out to be a good warrior, but she might just reverse all of that with her snappiness.

Cloudpaw had padded away to talk to Lilypool. Amberclaw could tell that her apprentice was infatuated with her sister, but she could also tell that Lilypool didn't feel the same. She saw him as a young cat, nothing more. Amberclaw hailed Foxheart and Nightpaw to join her on another patrol. She never had time to be in the camp, she was always busying herself with one thing or another. Amberclaw knew that her clan mates were beginning to notice, but until her kits were apprentices, she was going to be moving about as much as possible. Foxheart joined her with Smoketail and Nightpaw for a border patrol. Amberclaw led them out of camp quickly. She had to get away from her kits as quickly as she could manage. They pissed her off.

**This point doesn't really elude much to the next chapter's happenings, but basically, it's about Amberclaw's unwanted kits. I hope you guys enjoyed this... ****And please review!  
**

**~AS**

****edit**  
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**Still doesn't elude. Oh well, I couldn't really figure out a way to make it do so more than it already did. Bleh.  
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	3. The Third Challenge

**_Disclaimer-_ I don't own Warriors**

The Third Challenge

Spiderkit lay next to the rest of her litter mates, curled up against Miststream, their loving mother. In her dreams, Spiderkit pounced through tall, green grass. She was chasing after a golden butterfly. The butterfly floated way ahead of her, and Spiderkit lay an enthusiastic chase after it. The butterfly wasn't a butterfly though, and when Spiderkit came closer to it, she discoved it to be rather odd looking. A strange creature that seemed to be composed of worms was there instead of the pretty, golden butterfly she'd originally spotted. She'd take the butterfly over that thing any day. Spiderkit scrunched up her nose in slight disgust as one of the wormy tentacles reached toward her.

"Hello, Spiderkit. I am the Flying Spaghetti Monster, or the FSM," the floating blob of worms told her. Spiderkit stared at him, her ears laid back on her head. What kind of creature...? She definitely didn't trust it. It was composed of worms for yowling out loud! Her fluffy tail flicked back and forth, and Spiderkit was tempted to glare evilly at it. Her fur was already fluffed up defensively, yet she couldn't help the question that lingered in her mind.

"What's spaghetti?" she asked, her eyes shining with curiosity. The wormy creature chuckled softly. Spiderkit fluffed out her pelt again in fright. What was it thinking? She stared at with wide, yellow-green eyes. She was no where near trusting the anomaly. Spiderkit wasn't one to trust others very quickly, unless they were a cat, of course... from FireClan. She knew better than to trust outsiders at least.

"Spaghetti is my arms, legs, body... It is the worm-like part of my body," he told Spiderkit. She narrowed her eyes at him, wondering why spaghetti was worm-like. Who would want anything to do with something so gross looking. Spiderkit shivered slightly. That was so... weird.

"So who are you, FSM?" she asked, tilting her head slightly. FSM rose a tentacle to the starry sky. She followed the movement curiously, half expecting the explanation to be viewable in the sky, plain and easy to understand. Spiderkit was still a bit disturbed by the spaghetti.

"I am the great deity that rules over humans," he told her. She narrowed her eyes in confusion. Humans were ruled by a worm-like thing? How strange. Spiderkit just didn't know what those 'humans' the FSM had mentioned were. She felt like they were the twolegs that she'd heard some cats mention once or twice, but really she didn't know.

"Humans? Is that what you call twolegs?" Spiderkit meowed. FSM nodded. Her questions had been answered rather easily. Twolegs had a strange deity. She was glad to have StarClan. It was better than having the FSM watching over all cats. That would just be all too mind boggling for her. She shook her fuzzy, little head quickly. Spiderkit was definitely thinking too much.

"Right you are. Like how you cats are taken care of by your ancestors, twolegs are looked after by I, the FSM," he answered her easily. Spiderkit nodded. That made a inkling of sense. She kind of liked learning about the twoleg deity. How strange it was for them to have a pasta creature watching over them. Rather suddenly, Spiderkit's stomach growled. The FSM did look admittedly tasty. He probably wouldn't like hearing her say that though.

"Weird," Spiderkit replied, her tail flicking back and forth. FSM only laughed. He seemed too relaxed about it all. It just didn't seem to bother him all that much, which was understandable, since he was a star walker. They usually knew anything and everything, but they weren't always trustworthy. Spiderkit wondered if StarClan had a main ruler or something of that kind. She may not find that out though for a long time.

"Twolegs would say the same about your StarClan," he said. Spiderkit narrowed her eyes at him, not able to quite understand what he meant by that. Twolegs talked? The conversation was beginning to go beyond her understanding. She shook her head and tried not to think about it. It was just so confusing.

Spiderkit sat up in her shared nest and looked around the nursery. The bush's leaves rustled in the night wind. Spiderkit's ears flickered about, listening closely to the night. Then she snuggled back up to her litter mates to sleep the rest of the night away. What a weird dream.

...

Spiderkit prodded her brother, Squirrelkit awake. Her yellow-green eyes were glittering with excitement. Squirrelkit yawned loudly.

"What is it?" He asked his sister, his amber eyes still seemed rather sleepy. Spiderkit swatted him quickly and bounced away. That efficiently riled up her brother. He wriggled out from under Graykit quickly, glaring at her.

"Get back here, Spiderkit!" he meowed. He chased after his faster sister. Eventually, she whipped around and tackled him. Spiderkit wanted to tell her brother about the FSM. She knew it was a bit crazy, but at least it would make a good story to her fellow littler mates.

"Guess what?" she said, putting her face up really close to her brother's. He wiggled slightly, trying to escape her hold. Spiderkit loved how she could always pin down her brother. She was just too strong for him to escape.

"What?" he asked after a moment. Spiderkit grinned. Her ears lowered down and folded back on her forehead as she took on a frightened yet serious expression. It looked rather comical to Miststream, who purred softly in amusement.

"I know who looks after twolegs," she told Squirrelkit. He stared at her in disbelief. Blazekit bounced over, looking as curious as ever. Spiderkit then knew she'd grabbed her brothers' attention. She knew then it was time to let them in on the secret.

"Who?" Blazekit asked, his russet splotched ears pricked forward. His ivy green eyes were bright with excitement. Spiderkit turned to him, her tail brushing the ground slightly. She gave him a smirk quickly.

"The FSM!" Spiderkit meowed, fluffing out her long coat. Squirrelkit looked at her incredlously. She felt vastly more informed than the other two, and it seemed she was beginning to draw Graykit's attention as well.

"Who?" he asked. Spiderkit rolled her eyes like Squirrelkit was an idiot. He always asked the silliest of questions. It wasn't like she was going to say it was the FSM and then not elaborate to them who exactly to FSM was.

"The FSM, or the Flying Spaghetti Monster, is this creature that looks like a bunch of worms entangled together," she said, creeping toward Blazekit and entirely serious. Blazekit scrunched up his nose in disgust, much like Spiderkit had in her dream when she saw the FSM for the first time. This amused her. Blazekit and her had a lot in common. She just knew they were going to turn out to be the best warriors in FireClan.

"Eww," he replied. Spiderkit nodded. She knew how Blazekit felt. It was nothing to ignore. The FSM was quite disgusting. Maybe twolegs were too.

"I know, which is why twolegs are so scary," she told the two, nodding her head swiftly. Graykit stared with wide eyes. A ball of worms looked over twolegs? She was thankful for StarClan, ancestors were much better than the FSM. Tigerkit yawned, rolling onto his back next to Miststream. The she-cat purred, watching the rambunctious kit tell the others about the strange deity. Spiderkit seemed to have an overactive imagination.

"Let's play a game!" Blazekit declared. Spiderkit looked over at him excitedly. He always came up with the best games.

"Spiderkit, you be the FSM, and we'll be StarClan cats," Blazekit meowed. Miststream could tell that Blazekit would be a good warrior one day. Spiderkit seemed like she would be a great warrior as well. Graykit was too soft spoken around the others, and Miststream worried about her a bit.

"Roar! Fear my wormy tentacles!" Spiderkit roared. Graykit squealed as Spiderkit tussled with her. Then Miststream knew Graykit would be just fine with Spiderkit looking after her. Squirrelkit ran and knocked Spiderkit off of Graykit, and a bunch of adorable fluffs went rolling across the nursery. They somehow didn't manage to awake Tigerkit, who could probably sleep through a war. Miststream watched them all, and sometimes she felt like she knew who Squirrelkit and Spiderkit's parents were, but the names caused a knot to form in her stomach. It couldn't be... If their parents were ever found out, there would be a great calamity in the clan. Oh, Falconstar... What had he been thinking?

...

Leafbare came with a layer of snow. Cloudpaw feel sick with a strange disease that Littlestep didn't recognize. He suspected though, that it had something to do with all the dead birds. Littlestep just hoped he could figure out how to treat Cloudpaw before it was too late.

**Well, that eludes quite nicely to the next ol' bit. This is kinda fun! I'm becoming more acquainted with all the Warriors concepts again. I just hope I'm doing a good job with this. A review would be a nice help!**

**~AS**

****edit**  
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**This is fun to edit! I didn't really realize it before though. That, and after the new James Bond movie, Skyfall, I'm ready to do some editing! The opening song for the movie was "Skyfall" by Adele. That's a good song. You guys should listen to it. And drop me a review~ :)  
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	4. The Fourth Challenge

**Disclaimer-**** I do not own Warriors, which is conceptualized a bit here.**

The Fourth Challenge 

Cloudpaw lay in a nest beneath the protective branches of the old, fallen tree that made up Littlestep's den. The medicine cat shuffled herbs beneath his paws, wondering what the disease that had clamped its claws around Cloudpaw was. Could it be what had been killing the birds in the forest? Littlestep sniffed the young cat's pelt, the putrid scent almost causing him to gag. Cloudpaw's amber eyes were clouded and looked similar to Mousecloud's, the old elder was barely able to see due to it. If Cloudpaw lost his sight, even the majority of it, from that sickness then he would become an elder without ever experiencing the joy of being a warrior. At least, Littlestep assumed it was joyous. He was pretty content as a medicine cat.

Cloudpaw shivered, his long, white pelt shone with sweat and clung to his thin body. Littlestep had given the apprentice feverfew, with hopes that it would help with his chills. Then the cat began to retch and throw up. Littlestep was beginning to feel at a loss. What was it that was ailing him? It wasn't an infection in his chest... That disease had run through the clans a while back, bringing them to the small numbers they were. Illnesses were dangerous and more likely in an overcrowded camp. Not with so few numbers like they were. Littlestep just didn't understand this sudden outbreak. Where had it come from?

Amberclaw seemed to be losing her nerve. First, she had a illegitimate litter of kits and now her apprentice seemed to be down for the count. Littlestep had to give her some thyme to help her calm down and sleep. The she-cat was simply hysterical. The medicine cat himself was beginning to feel overwhelmed. Cloudpaw's condition only seemed to know one route, and it was the one that only became progressively worse for the tom. Graykit popped into the den a couple times asking if he needed any help, but Littlestep was more keen to send her away than to allow her to be around Cloudpaw for too long. Even if the kit wanted to be his apprentice, he couldn't allow her to become sick. Graykit was more prone to illness at her age, and she simply refused to acknowledge that. It was constantly sending Littlestep over the edge.

"Littlestep... Am I going to die?" Cloudpaw called from what was becoming his nest in the den. Littlestep stared at the apprentice for a long time, not knowing at all what to say to Cloudpaw. He didn't want the apprentice to give up, but things weren't looking good for him either.

"I don't know," Littlestep answered slowly. Cloudpaw groaned and fell into a fit of coughs. Littlestep hurried off, finding some tansy for the apprentice. The herb would help his cough as long as it was supplied in low doses, otherwise it would do more harm than good. Littlestep just hoped Cloudpaw wouldn't empty the contents of his stomach in the den before the herbs could do any good. Each time that that happened, Littlestep and Cloudpaw lost a little hope.

"Eat this, it will help with your cough," he told Cloudpaw gently. The tom nodded to Littlestep slightly and dutifully consumed the tansy. His cloudy, amber eyes seemed to gaze straight through the medicine cat. Littlestep watched in silence. The medicine cat's pelt was dirty, and his eyes were filled with endless worry for the young cat. So far it seemed to be a rather contained sickness. Only Cloudpaw had it, but if Littlestep knew anything, he knew it was bound to spread to another cat soon. Thus, he had to find the cure and soon.

Lilypool visited Cloudpaw on the third day. Her blue-green eyes full of worry for both the apprentice and Littlestep. The beautiful, gray she-cat had a big heart and offered to help the medicine cat out. He barely managed to even attempt to turn her down. Littlestep could barely keep his eyes open for long, and when he did manage to drift off, his mind gifted him with vivid nightmares. He was drowning in worry and fear. StarClan help them if he couldn't find the cure.

"Littlestep, you need to sleep," Lilypool meowed to the black tom. He acknowledged her with a slight nod of his head, but didn't move to go and sleep. Lilypool sighed and began to groom the medicine cat's pelt. At least he could be clean. She couldn't believe how he was falling apart under the stress. Littlestep had always seemed so calm and collected, no matter the situation. He always knew what to do, but with this strange and unknown illness, he was simply falling to pieces. Lilypool hated to see him like this, it hurt. She never even understood why it hurt her so much. She just didn't want to see him suffering. Lilypool really cared about Littlestep. She couldn't help it. The tom was just so gentle and kind. He was handsome and knowledgable as well, a cat she could look up to and trust.

Littlestep shivered under Lilypool's touch. A guarded glance was sent to her. She only gave a soft purr in reply. Lilypool couldn't explain how simply sharing tongues with Littlestep made her heart race. She simply enjoyed his company. He was the clan's medicine cat after all. Though it irritated her to think that she had to share the tom with other cats. Littlestep was too wonderful to share in her opinion. Lilypool tried to dismiss her thoughts and focus upon cleaning the black tom's pelt, but her mind had a tnedency to wander. Cloudpaw yowled in his nest, and Littlestep jumped to his aid.

"Cloudpaw!" he cried. The apprentice writhed in his nest for a moment before throwing up again. The tansy leaves barely digested in his stomach. Cloudpaw coughed miserably. The cat couldn't hold anything down, not even the herbs that were supposed to help him. Lilypool watched, looking a bit distressed. Littlestep dismissed her, his shoulders hunched over heavily. Why couldn't he help the apprentice? The herbs he was giving him were supposed to help!

On the fifth day, Lilypool fell ill as well. This sent Amberclaw over the edge. She was wild with worry and miserable. Falconstar was beginning to think that they might be having an outbreak of a bird-induced disease. He was beginning to consider moving the sick out of the camp. Littlestep protested passionately against it though. He barely managed to stop the leader from decreeing it.

Littlestep looked over Lilypool, a certain gentleness glowing in his guarded yellow-green eyes. He gave the two cats poppy seeds at night, but they still thrashed and yowled in their sleep. He feared that Cloudpaw was nearing his end, and Lilypool was chasing right after him. Littlestep forbid Graykit from coming near his den, even if she wanted to help. She was a kit and could catch disease all too easily. The black tom felt like he was running out of options. What if the two cats died?

Littlestep gave Cloudpaw some stinging nettle seeds with hopes that they would be able to remove the poison from Cloudpaw's belly. Maybe there was only something bad in the food. Lilypool had eaten with the apprentice once or twice. The two were good friends. As all the possibilities ran through the medicine cat's mind, he never thought to consider that the more time a cat spent around either of the cats, the more likely they were to fall ill. Due to the fact that it was leafbare, it was all too easy for disease to plague the clan. Falconstar had been good to suggest removing the trio from the camp.

Within a few days, Graykit and Littlestep were ill. Littlestep battled his sickness much more ferociously than the rest, just to deliver herbs to the others. Littlestep was miserable though. His entire body felt like it weighed as much as a couple foxes. He could barely make himself leave his nest and tend to the other three sick cats. The four were moved out of camp despite Miststream's protests. Her kit was barely weened off milk! Falconstar couldn't risk the health of the rest of the clan. It was leafbare, and it was unavoidable.

Littlestep and Lilypool did their best to create a makeshift den for themselves. Cloudpaw was too weak to help, and he was withering away in his nest. Graykit was constantly crying out in pain or just for her mother, who she felt like had abandoned her. Cloudpaw seemed to improve under a mixture of feverfew and stinging needle seeds. The apprentice's eyes cleared, and he was able to help Littlestep treat the others. Lilypool, however, seemed to reject the remedy. She wouldn't stop retching, even if there was nothing left in her belly to throw up. When Lilypool wasn't throwing up, she was whimpering in pain or thrashing about in her sleep. Littlestep would sleep as close as he could to her because she called for him in her sleep, and she was just so cold. He adored the she-cat, despite the warrior code. He wanted to at least cure her.

Littlestep was constantly trying new treatments in hopes of curing her enough to allow her to eat and sleep peacefully. Finally, while Littlestep was sleeping, Lilypool's fever broke, and she was led onto the path of recovery as if StarClan had come and helped her out of the sickness's strangle hold.

Littlestep called it bird sickness. It wasn't proven that the sickness and the birds were connected though. Littlestep cared little for that detail, however. It had thrown the clan all out of sorts and was definitely going to be a deadly disease. The clan would have to tread carefully until leafbare was over, and the birds returned from the swing of death.

The small troop stayed away from camp a day longer before finally returning. Miststream greeted her kit with the utmost enthusiasm while Amberclaw returned to her much more loving self out of relief. She seemed to have completely severed her kits from herself. Littlestep stared on almost stoically. Spiderkit tussled with Blazekit while Squirrelkit welcomed Graykit back. Tigerkit just slept happily. The kits were all good. Why couldn't Amberclaw just accept them as her responsibility like most mothers? The whole predicament just stressed him. It could blow up in their faces if they kept it quiet for too long, but that also meant challenging Falconstar's honor. It was all just so troublesome. Littlestep fell into his nest with a sigh and tried to catch up on his sleep. He had too much on his mind, and not to mention Lilypool. He couldn't help it when his eyes lingered on her lithe form. She was so beautiful in his eyes, but most toms would agree upon her beauty. Lilypool was graceful and a good warrior. She was admirable. Littlestep was a bit ambivalent about his feelings toward her. Were they platonic or romantic? He hoped it wasn't the latter. Then he would find himself in quite a spot.

...

A beautiful calico lay in the nursery of SandClan, her belly large and heavy with kits. Her green eyes sparkled as she thought of the kits father. He may have been a tom from another clan, but he loved her and their kits. She loved him so much and was proud to be the one he chose to bear his kits. She couldn't wait to name them with him.

**Gosh, my phone app for the Warriors series saved me in this chapter. I would have been lost to name the herbs I mentioned here otherwise. Heh. I hope you enjoyed regardless of my bumbling attempt to sound like I know what I'm talking about. ****  
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**Amberclaw seems to have recovered here, we'll see about that. She is a bit ambivalent about her kits. I guess she'll figure it all out eventually. She does _not_ want them though. She is kind of disgusted with them, due to their tendency to remind her of a certain _incident_.  
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**I know, no deaths. It was a Christmas miracle, just as the prompt called for. I eluded to the next one here with the last paragraph. We're going to travel off to SandClan. If you didn't catch how it connected to the next prompt, and you happen to know what it is... the Queen's name is Applepetal. That might help.  
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******You might want to drop me a review~ *hint hint, nudge nudge***

**~AS**

****edit**  
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**Yay! Another successful edit~ Now to get on with the next couple of chapters... Hrm. We'll see what I do with those! The thirteenth challenge though... It might be a bit difficult. D: Oh well though.  
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	5. The Fifth Challenge

_**Disclaimer-**_**Red cat, Blue cat, One cat, Two cats. Still don't own much.**

The Fifth Challenge

Applepetal lay in the beneath branches of the sole source of coverage in SandClan's camp. SandClan was unafraid of the sky, unlike FireClan and LeafClan. Applepetal was within the nursery, her large belly was full of kits. She was happy to be a queen, even if her beloved was in another clan. He would love their kits even so. She was the only queen in SandClan. They hadn't had a new litter of kits in moons. Some of the cats were sad that they were unable to become mentors. The apprentices were nearing their time to become warriors, but there was no kits to take over their duties as apprentices. It was slightly depressing.

Regardless, Applepetal had pride in her becoming a queen. Not only was her clan happy with her, but she was going to grow closer to Smoketail. The handsome gray tom was the father of her kits. He may have been a FireClan warrior, but that didn't prevent their love. She was going to visit him that night too. Applepetal loved to sit under the stars with him, their tails intertwined. It made her heart swell with joy. She just loved him so much! She couldn't help it. The warrior code just didn't apply when it came to Smoketail.

Duskclaw padded into the nursery. Her yellow-green eyes were practically glowing with excitement. Applepetal purred in amusement. She had no idea what was up with her best friend, but Applepetal felt happy for Duskclaw regardless.

"Applepetal, you'll never guess what just happened!" Duskclaw meowed excitedly. She was practically bouncing with alacrity, and Applepetal hadn't even uttered a single word of reply. She shook her dappled head, amused by her best friend's silliness. Surely it couldn't be greater than Applepetal's plans to meet Smoketail again.

"What is it?" she asked, trying to express a genuine curiosity that simply wasn't there. Duskclaw didn't seem to notice though, which Applepetal was quite thankful for. It would have been awkward to explain why she didn't really care to Duskclaw.

"Frozenstep asked me to be his mate!" she practically yowled. Applepetal's pelt heated up. Frozenstep? The deputy was Applepetal's brother! She couldn't believe he hadn't discussed it with her first. Applepetal had known Duskclaw had liked the withdrawn and cold cat for a long time, but she couldn't imagine her brother actually reciprocating the she-cat's feelings. Something just didn't match up to her.

"That's... wonderful, Duskclaw," Applepetal mewed in a weak voice. Her mind was clouded with so many doubts. She probably would just have to see it with her own eyes first. Duskclaw stared at her friend for a long moment.

"You seem a bit... reluctant," she commented. Applepetal stared at Duskclaw in shock. She had been, but that didn't mean Duskclaw had to point it out. Applepetal sighed softly.

"I'm just shocked, that's all," she told her friend quietly. Duskclaw then smiled understandingly.

"That's how I felt when he asked me," she told Applepetal. Applepetal purred.

"I'm sure you two will be wonderful for each other," she replied. Duskclaw nodded curtly and padded off to attend to her duties. Applepetal could've sworn she saw a bounce in Duskclaw's step. Her friend was happy, and that should've been all she wanted, but Applepetal couldn't shake that foreboding feeling she had about it all. Frozenstep just wasn't the type to fall in love. Applepetal knew this for a long time, and as did Duskclaw. Neither of them understood the tom's sudden proposal. Duskclaw had waited for him to tell her something of her feelings for a long time though, so Applepetal couldn't be shocked that she just jumped at the chance to be his mate. Frozenstep had probably been really nervous, the thought made Applepetal purr in amusement. Her brother would be a great leader one day.

Applepetal padded out of the nursery at dusk to make her short journey over to the FireClan border where she'd meet Smoketail. Everyday the journey became harder to walk for her. Her kits were really weighing her down, but that was alright. It only meant that their time to enter into the world was coming closer. She sat at the border, allowing the night breeze to seep into her fur. She could scent newleaf in the wind, and it was already beginning to get warmer. Applepetal wanted her kits to know newleaf, not the horrors of leafbare in their first moments. Smoketail appeared, the shadows of the forest peeled off of him by moonlight. The dark gray tom was incredibly handsome under the moon's lighting.

"Applepetal," he purred, pressing his muzzle to her cheek. His tail brushed over her swelled stomach. Applepetal gazed at him, unable to hide the sheer joy that filled her body with his arrival. Smoketail looked into her green eyes lovingly.

"They're close to joining us," she meowed softly. Smoketail pressed his flank to hers, allowing their pelts to intermingle. Applepetal leaned into him, closing her eyes and allowing his scent to wrap around her and fill her to the brim. Love swelled in her heart. She hated being away from him, but they had their duties in their own clans. They had to remain loyal. It saddened Applepetal, but she was willing to do it because she was loyal to her clan with every fiber of her being. She was loyal to Smoketail as well, but just Smoketail, not his clan.

"I can't wait," he told her softly, his muzzle close to her ear. Applepetal flenched away, a giggle rippling through her. The air that escaped him when he spoke tickled and sent shivers through her. Applepetal couldn't tell if she liked it or not. Smoketail purred and touched his nose to hers. Applepetal sighed softly. She loved being close to him, around and near him. They rarely saw each other at gatherings, and when they did, they never really had a chance to talk. Applepetal cherished those moments by the FireClan border with Smoketail.

"That tickled," she laughed, her tail curling around his. Smoketail chuckled, his yellow eyes glinting mischievously. Applepetal adored that look in his eyes. It always meant something more was to come. She pressed up against him happily, wishing they could stay together the entire night. Smoketail pulled away slightly.

"I have the dawn border patrol tomorrow, so I have now," he whispered to Applepetal. She sighed sadly.

"Alright," she nodded slightly, her green eyes guarded heavily. Smoketail touched his muzzle to hers once more then ran off into his territory. Applepetal watched him go in silence. She would miss him, but she had to return to camp as well. The clan's first queen in moons had much to take care of, as in be fawned over all day. She assumed her clan mates couldn't help it, a new queen was a precious thing to them. Applepetal slipped into camp unnoticed. She returned to her nest with a sigh, happy to give her aching paws a rest. Her kits were being expected any day at the time.

...

Newleaf brought new life to the clans. Sweetgum trees bloomed with flowers and the forest smelt soft and inviting. The moors where SandClan resided was full of wild flowers and fresh herbs that were creeping through the melting snow. Applepetal lay in her nest with three adorable balls of fluff curled up next to her. The trio had yet to be named because Applepetal wanted to name them with Smoketail, but she also did want to leave them on their own.

"May all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the high rock!" Lionstar yowled. Applepetal sat up and came close to the entrance of the nursery. She wondered if Gingerpaw and Duckpaw were finally becoming warriors, thus leaving the apprentices' den empty. It was a happy and sad thought. SandClan would have new, strong warriors, but no apprentices to follow after. Applepetal looked up at their leader in silence. The beautiful golden tom stared down at the gathered cats proudly.

"Our apprentices have grown into strong warriors and passed their assessments multiple times. They are ready to join the warriors as warriors themselves," Lionstar began. Applepetal smiled. That was wonderful news! Maybe there would be a new queen joining her soon. She knew the way Brackenfur looked at Gingerpaw. It was with the same eyes Smoketail gave to her, "Gingerpaw and Duckpaw, please step forward. I, Lionstar, call upon StarClan to gaze upon these two young apprentices. They have trained long and hard to become warriors, and so I will commend them for all their hard work." Applepetal nodded, practically hanging onto her leader's every word.

"Gingerpaw, do you promise to uphold the Warrior Code and protect your clan, even at the cost of your life?" Lionstar asked the sandy colored she-cat. Gingerpaw was practically shaking with nervousness and excitement. Brackenfur was staring at her lovingly. Applepetal ached to have the same openness with Smoketail as the other two.

"I do," Gingerpaw squeaked. Lionstar smiled at her reassuringly. Then his gaze swept over to Duckpaw, who seemed much more confident than Gingerpaw at that moment. The tom could barely keep himself composed.

"And do you, Duckpaw, promise to uphold the Warrior Code and to protect your clan, even at the cost of your life?" Lionstar asked, amusement glittering in his amber eyes. Duckpaw practically jumped to answer his leader.

"I do!" He meowed excitedly. Applepetal purred in amusement. One of her kits wriggled and peered at the apprentice through bleary eyes. Applepetal licked the little tom's head lovingly. She didn't want to miss the announcing of the two apprentice's new names. That could end up rather embarrassing.

"Then I am proud to give you your warrior names. Gingerpaw, you will be now know as Gingerblossom. Duckpaw, you will now be known as Duckflight," Lionstar declared. The whole clan jumped to begin the chorus of the warriors' names.

"Gingerblossom! Duckflight!" Applepetal felt her clan's joy rise up through her like waves crashing against a beach. She knew she was wholly loyal to her clan. Applepetal knew it better than every other cat around her. Gingerblossom had run to Brackenfur in excitement, pressing her flank to his. She was bursting with joy. Applepetal felt bitterly happy for the couple. She ushered her kits back into the den, barely able to wait until dusk. Applepetal had asked Duskclaw to watch over her kits while she took a midnight walk through the forest. Applepetal used the excuse of needing to stretch her legs. She and Smoketail met at the border as usual, and together they named her kits. _Cherrykit, Harvestkit, Treekit. _

...

A fox gazed from a hill above SandClan. It watched the small shapes move about the land curiously, a slight froth gathered at its lips. Its eyes wild with blood lust. Every one of those shapes looked tasty.

**A nice allusion here. The next prompt will be a bit of fun to write. I will be working quite hard on it today. I hope you enjoyed the snippet of SandClan, we're actually just about finished with SandClan. _Almost_, but not quite. :) **

**Do you guys like Applepetal? I think she's a sweet cat. Gingerblossom is cute too. Agh! I'm falling in love with my cats! Dx It'll make it harder to do the next chapter now...  
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**I kinda miss writing about Amberclaw. She's such a fun cat. She's having a bit of trouble with her last challenge of growing up though. Will she end up good or bad...? You can always guess~**

**Review Please! And Merry Christmas!  
**

**~AS  
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	6. The Sixth Challenge

_**Disclaimer-**_** Still own very, very little here.  
**

The Sixth Challenge

Lionstar gathered the cats that were to join him when they went to the gathering. Claystrike, who was SandClan's second medicine cat, was left behind with Springpelt, Duckflight and Redtail, as well as the queens, of course. Just as Applepetal had guessed, Gingerblossom had joined her in the nursery, and the she-cat had her own two balls of fluff, Grasskit and Volekit. They got along rather well with Applepetal's three. Lionstar and Frozenstep led the rest of the cats out of the camp, their path led by the full moon. Springpelt stood guard at the entrance of the camp, and Claystrike and Duckflight were conversing quietly. It seemed like it was going to be a peaceful night.

...

Many seasons ago, there had been a beautiful vixen that came to the clans' territory. She lived with her cubs under a large bush in FireClan territory and hunted rabbits in SandClan territory. SandClan caught her and murdered her, and FireClan found the cubs, disposing of them rather quickly. What they hadn't know was her mate, Wraith, a large and powerful reynard had been angered by their self-defense.

Wraith gazed down over the clans, watching as they took a small party from their main headquarters to go to a clearing in the middle of their territory. They were leaving their homes vunerable. Wraith was a smart fox, and knew that in order to at least take back some of his pride, he had to hurt those clans. Eve, the vixen, had been his lifemate. They'd only managed to have one litter of cubs that survived. Wraith's bloodline was not going to be carried down very far because of those cats. Eve and his cubs had to be avenged.

Wraith slunk down the hill, heading directly for SandClan's camp. His energy was kicking up with adrenaline and bloodthirst. He jumped at the first cat he saw, Springpelt. He tossed her to the side, and she fell with a sickening crack and didn't get back up. Wraith turned his blazing brown eyes on Claystrike and Duckflight next, but then he scented something that was much more tantalizing. A soft scent of milk and kittens that led to the low hanging willow. The reynard approached it slowly, and two cats jumped out at him. The fur had splotches of gray in them, but they were fierce. Claystrike ran aid the elders, Russetfoot and Speckleclaw. Wraith hissed and barked at the two interfering cats. He wanted them to feel his pain when cubs were lost. Speckleclaw lept onto Wraith's back, and Russetfoot battled his claws. Russetfoot wasn't as agile as she used to be, and Wraith tore her apart, drenching his long claws in her bright red blood. Claystrike was tossed aside easily by Wraith, and the fox flipped over onto his back, crushing Speckleclaw beneath him. Duckflight had run to warn Lionstar of the fox. It was going to kill all the surprised cats in the camp!

Gingerblossom was hurrying the kits into Lionstar's den, an old rabbit hole that was made larger by past clan leaders. Wraith trapped Cherrykit in his paws, and Applepetal launched herself at him. He was going to kill her kits! Wraith chomped down on Cherrykit, drenching his muzzle in her blood. Appleblossom wailed a strangled battle cry and raked her claws over Wraith's left eye. The fox howled in anger, and Applepetal hissed her anguish. Cherrykit was dead. Wraith flicked his paws out knocking Treekit toward Gingerblossom, who hid the rest of the kits in the den. Applepetal attacked Wraith, trying to keep him away from the rest of the kits and Gingerblossom.

"Hide!" She ordered Gingerblossom. Wraith tossed Applepetal across the camp, and she struggled to bring herself to her paws, blood pulled at her paws, and she was slipping on it. Claystrike managed to bring himself around and launched himself at the raynard.

...

Duckflight ran into the clearing, his entire body shaking. His yellow eyes were stretched wide and his heart thundered with fear in his chest. The clan leaders sat upon the highledge and were staring at Duckflight in shock. He'd let out a fearful yowl upon his entrance. A cloud rolled over the moon.

"Lionstar! We're under attack!" Duckflight yowled. The fox was probably gorging himself on Springpelt's flesh, or Claystrike's... or even worse, the kits'.

"What?!" all three of the clan leaders cried in shock. The shadow of the cloud covering the moon fell over the clearing. Duckflight struggled to breathe.

"Fox..." he meowed, then collapsed, no longer able to keep on his paws. Lionstar lept into action, there were kits to defend in their camp. Smoketail was one of the first cats to jump to his paws. His kits were in SandClan! He looked to Falconstar in desperation. Brackenfur charged after Lionstar, he was worried about Gingerblossom and his kits as well.

...

Wraith slashed his claws across Applepetal's face. She rolled across the ground. Claystrike heaved himself to his paws, clawing at Wraith pitifully. Wraith pressed the medicine cat to the ground and tore his throat open to make sure he didn't stand back up to fight anymore. Wraith scented the air, tracing the soft milky scent to where the kits had been hidden. The fox flexed his claws and shook out his pelt. He laid his eyes upon the frightened she-cat that stood at the den where the kits were hidden. Wraith pricked his ears looking away from her quickly. Yowls were filling the air. The reynard wasn't going to die there. He jumped up over the slope and slid away from the blood bath. He wasn't done with his revenge.

...

Lionstar entered the camp, bits of russet and gray fur was strewn across the camp from what was left of Russetfoot. Speckleclaw layed paralyzed beside the nursery. Applepetal was barely breathing and her face had three slashes across it. Springpelt's neck had snapped, and she'd bled out through her mouth. Gingerblossom sat in front of the leader's den shaking, Cherrykit laying at her paws. The kit had been eaten like a cat might a mouse or any other prey. Brackenfur ran to his mate, but she wouldn't say a word. Claystrike's neck was torn open. Oceanspray stood over the other medicine cat, her whole body shaking.

"Claystrike..." she mewed softly, touching her nose to the tom's cheek lightly. Redtail had curled around Springpelt's dead body, mourning his sister's death loudly. Frozenstep was attempting to bring Oceanspray to Applepetal, who was still alive, but hurt badly. Oceanspray, however, could barely leave her apprentice. Lionstar shook slightly.

"Bring the dead below high rock," he meowed. Claystrike, Cherrykit, Springpelt and what they could find of Russetfoot was set there. Oceanspray tended to Applepetal, Treekit, Volekit and Speckleclaw in her den. Gingerblossom was taken back to the nursery with Harvestkit and Grasskit. The she-cat was silent as if all that she'd seen had stolen it away. Redtail sat vigil with Lionstar that night.

...

Wraith left the SandClan camp and stumbled upon LeafClan cats that were returning from the gathering. Reedstar immediately attacked the fox while it was confused. Sparrowfur and Brookpetal followed after their leader without a doubt. Hailpaw clawed at Wraith's flank. The cats weren't giving him room to breath. All the reynard could do was flail about and hope he hit one of the cats. LeafClan cats brought Wraith to his demise. Reedstar wore his battle wounds proudly. They had managed to protect the clans without losing a single cat, but SandClan wasn't so lucky. Many cats had been lost. StarClan welcomed them warmly.

**Well, that was a fun chapter. I hope you enjoyed it~ Lots and lots of death, but I'm sure you saw it coming. I liked SandClan... :/ Hrmm... I don't know what I wish to do with the next prompt, so no allusions this time. Bear with me, I'll figure something out.**

**Anyways, I review would be nice. I like to know how I'm doing...  
**

**~AS  
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